Trafficking cloud over baby Manji

Trafficking cloud over baby Manji
Bhanu Pratap Singh
Wednesday, August 13, 2008  04:11 IST

JAIPUR: A Jaipur NGO has put up another hurdle in the way of 18-day-old Manji Yamada going home to Japan with her father, claiming the child was part of a well-organised “child-trafficking racket”.
Taking note of a habeas corpus petition filed by the NGO, which was represented by a local lawyer, the Rajasthan high court has issued notices to the centre and the state government.
Anand-based infertility expert Dr Nayna Patel, under whose supervision the child was born, said the petitioners had no locus standi in the case. “This is a ridiculous allegation.
A paternity test would confirm that the child’s father is Dr Ikufumi Yamada, a Japanese citizen,” Dr Patel told DNA.
“What evidence does the NGO have to make such wild allegations? I will sue it for defamation,” the gynaecologist said.
In the petition, Dr Patel, whose Akanksha Clinic in Gujarat has become a hub for childless couples seeking surrogate mothers, has been accused of running the racket.
Though the Indian government recognises surrogacy, the laws governing it are not properly defined, leading to several grey areas.
The NGO’s petition before the high court says since there is no law covering surrogate children in India, neither the Japanese surgeon, Ikufumi Yamada, who donated his sperm nor Ikufumi’s mother Amiko Yamada, who is presently taking care of the baby in Jaipur, can claim her custody.
Dr Yamada’s estranged wife, Yuki, and Manji’s surrogate mother, Pritiben Mehta, have not claimed custody of the child so far.
The new twist to the issue is likely to delay Manji’s departure to Japan.
The complex web of Indian immigration rules and Japanese laws have left the infant stranded in India.
Since Japan does not recognise surrogacy, its embassy in India had refused to issue a visa for the child.
A few days back, the Anand municipality had issued a birth certificate to the baby, recognising Yamada as her biological father.
Yamada’s lawyers had expressed hope that the Indian government would issue travel documents to Manji on the basis of the birth certificate.